Musings on food and life from Beth Bader, the co-author of The Cleaner Plate Club. Ingredients: original recipes, food policy insights, parenting fun, and a dash of humor.

Wednesday, September 03, 2008

The Important Questions in Life

Never fails, each year at about the same time, I ask myself, "What have I done with my life in all these years?" This annual taking stock, of course, happens around birthday time. But, I had little time for self-analysis that we Virgos are prone to. We had dinner for 14 to prepare.

Which brought me to the even more pressing question in my life:

What the hell are we going to do with all these cucumbers?

Usually, it's zucchini that multiply like kudzu vines this time of season. But the CSA bag yielded like a dozen cucurbits and a huge melon. My spouse suggested "lovely parting gifts" for our dinner guests. My plan was a cucumber salad. We also served up a fresh corn and green chile dish that went over well.

The key is the very thin slices, made possible by a kitchen tool called the mandoline. If you don’t have one, just slice as thin as you can with a good knife. Mandolines are handy, but dangerous. After losing a side of my thumb, I keep a steel mesh glove handy anytime I use it. Seriously.

Mix the onion and cucumbers in a large bowl. In a small bowl add the dill and the sugar and vinegar. Mix to dissolve the sugar. Add the oil, salt and pepper and whisk to emulsify. Toss with the cucumbers and onions. Allow the flavor to marry for an hour or two in the fridge before serving.

Blanch the corn in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. You may have to do this in batches. Cut the corn from the cob, discarding cobs. Place corn, green chiles, melted butter, salt and pepper in 9x13 baking dish. Bake, covered, for 20 minutes until heated through. Mix in the cilantro and queso fresco. Serve warm.

Our friends also brought food, lots of it. Everything from an Asian slaw, a spinach dip, to a fantastic potato salad with artichoke hearts and "Minnesota Mac and Cheese." I was told in no uncertain terms by my child that she wanted "Jerry's Mac and Cheese" not mine in her lunch box. Ouch, but I can concede defeat on that one. I've seen how much butter goes in his. It's so wrong and so damn good all at once.

All in all a great dinner, great company makes it. But still, with 10 more cukes in the fridge, I have yet to answer all my questions. Deep contemplation on life is just going to have to wait. I can just ignore that whole upcoming getting older thing. The kitchen is busy.

3 comments:

Todd
said...

Fresh Corn, Queso and Green Chile... I immediately copied this recipe down when I saw it on your blog. They serve this at a Mexican resturant called Bonita (Bonitanyc.com/ here in Brooklyn, and I love it. I always thought crack was in it though.

Thinly slice the cukes - I like to make them see-through. Put them in a strainer/colander with a shake or two of salt and put a bowl or plate weighted with something on top to express their water. Let them sit for about an hour to drain. Then toss them with rice-wine vinegar (or white balsamic vinegar), and toasted (the BROWN stuff) sesame oil. Taste it and add salt or sugar if you want. Sometimes I add toasted sesame seeds and chili flakes or Sirach (rooster) chili sauce on top. It keeps pretty well. Also, have you considered making fridge-pickles?

“Besides Nigella Lawson’s “How to Be a Domestic Goddess,” I can’t think of another cookbook that causes me to laugh out loud. From page one, I felt like I was sitting at my table with old friends. This isn’t just a cookbook: it’s an educational arsenal to wield your way with grace and dexterity through the carnival that is the modern American food system…Without increasing my weekly budget, I increased our vegetable consumption at our evening meals by two vegetable dishes a night. It was no longer a battle of eat your veggies,’ but a question of ‘which vegetable would you like to eat tonight?’”

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The Cleaner Plate Club offers simple solutions, recipes, meal suggestions, and tips to help parents get kids to eat good food and -- guess what? -- enjoy it. With humor and compassion, the authors show readers how to prepare real foods, plan ahead and estimate prep time, and get used to cooking food that doesn't come with printed directions. Their fresh advice will help parents eliminate food waste, plan for leftovers, present foods that are appealing to kids, and quit fighting with their children about food. The Cleaner Plate Club offers kid-tested recipes for every meal, basic vegetable preparations for farmers' market finds, and more healthful recipes for sweets and snacks. Readers will also find shopping strategies, the reasons kids like the foods they do, and vegetable profiles (including nutrition information and tips on selection, storage, and preparation). Expert advice and innovative ideas about feeding kids make this book a must-have for any parent. Fresh, funny, and nonjudgmental, The Cleaner Plate Club is a recipe for healthier kids and happier parents.